


Grape Bubblegum and Orange Koolaid

by sunnflowers



Series: Cheetos and Grape Soda [2]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, Gemlings, Mates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-16
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2018-12-02 18:24:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11514930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunnflowers/pseuds/sunnflowers
Summary: This is the second part ofCheetos and Grape Soda.Tumblr





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I decided that Cheetos and Grape Soda was getting a little long and that the second half the is focused more on the gemlings should get their own story.

Amethyst stretched out in the sand next to Jasper. She was enjoying having a moment to relax even if it was watching the gemlings. She had agreed to watch the little ones while Lapis took Pearl out on a semi-romantic walk. The birth of their gemlings had been stressful and Lapis wanted to do something supportive of their relationship and her mate. Amethyst was happy to help, not to mention Pearl and Lapis’ two daughters were a cake walk next to the quartz quadruplets.

Amethyst looked up to take another gemling count. Storm, Sky, and Jay were mock fighting near the beach house. By the edge of the water, she saw Cypress and Ivy happily making a sand castle beside Lake, Jewel, and Laz. Eight, eight gemlings, they were missing four. UGH. Amethyst thought to herself. She elbowed Jasper, who had her eyes closed. “Your daughters are missing,” Amethyst said with a sigh.

“Let me guess … the four that are suspiciously amethyst like in their behavior?” Amethyst elbowed Jasper harder and laughed.

“Go find them!” Jasper reluctantly got up and headed towards Storm and her playmates.

“It’s not fair! You can predict my moves!” Storm whined at Jay.

“But Storm,” Sky said softly, resting her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “You’re stronger than Jay. It evens out in the end. And besides, it’s just a game.” Jasper watched as Storm looked at Sky and reluctantly nodded. Sky and Storm had recently grown much closer and both Jasper and Amethyst had seen positive effects on both of the gemlings.

“Hey guys, have you seen the quartet?” Jasper asked with a sigh. The gemlings giggled in response.

“Did you lose them, Momma?” Sky asked laughing.

“No! I’m just not sure where they are.”

“So, you … lost them?” Jay asked looking confused.

“Alright, alright. You guys know your sisters, they like to hide from Mamma and me. Have you seen them?”

“Nope, but I’m sure they’ll show up if you make lunch,” Storm grinned. Jasper affectionately ruffled her daughter’s hair before shaking her head and walking away. Jasper tried looking near the base of the temple, the kids often played there and it was difficult to see from where she and Amethyst had been sitting.

As Jasper neared the base of the temple, she turned a corner and ran into a gem almost as tall as she was. Jasper was startled, but she looked more closely and noticed the gem seemed confused. Her eyes grew large and then a spark of realized flashed across her face.

“Momma!” The gem cried wrapping her arms around Jasper.

“Uuuff!” Jasper grunted as the wind was temporarily knocked out of her. “Hi babe, did you learn something new?” She said, gently prying the gem off her.

“Yes!” The gem said happily, spinning in circles showing herself off. Jasper just laughed.

“And who are you?” The gem stopped spinning and looked at herself carefully.

“Moonfire!” Jasper shook her head.

“Okay Moonfire. It was very nice to see you, but I need Amee, Starla, Sunrae, and Flame back for a while, okay?” Moonfire seemed to contemplate this for a bit before smiling.

“Okay Momma!” A short flash and the quartz quartet was sitting in the sand in front of Jasper.

“You’ve gotta play where Mamma and I can see you, remember?” The gemlings nodded looking apologetic. “Okay, go back over towards your sisters.” The gemlings gigged and ran back towards the front of the beach house. Oh boy. Jasper thought to herself and she followed the gemlings back.

The quartet went back to playing in the sand while Jasper rejoined Amethyst in the shade. “Your daughters learned a new game.” Amethyst opened one eye for a moment and then closed it again.

“So, you found them.”

“No, I found Moonfire,” Jasper replied with a grin. Amethyst finally sat up and looked at Jasper skeptically. She started to say something but changed her mind, pausing to look over at the quartet.

“Your second litter has figured out fusion and they formed a gem named Moonfire, didn’t they?” Amethyst asked with a sigh. Jasper just laughed, wrapping her arm around Amethyst’s waist. “Do you think Lapis and Pearl would switch with us?”

“Oh come on,” Jasper said softly. “They’re a quartz litter. I was expecting worse. And at least with Moonfire, we only have to track one gem.”

“I suppose you’re right. And where do you think they learned this game from?”

“Well,” Jasper said as she smiled. “I would have assumed from one Smoky Quartz, but since you seem as shocked as I am …” Jasper trailed off with an eye roll.

“Stevonnie.”

“Oh right, they saw them at training a few weeks ago. Wow, they’re fast learners aren’t they? Anyway, I think the warrior troupe over there is ready for lunch. Do you want to supervise or stay out here with the others?” Amethyst glanced over at Ivy meticulously brushing sand off her clothes while Cypress was in a water fight with Laz.

“Nope, I think it’s time for everyone to go inside. Everyone helps with lunch, everyone helps clean up, then we start 2-hour break.” Amethyst shook her head and mumbled, “And maybe stretch it to 4 hours.” Jasper just laughed.

 

Cypress sat on the couch watching the quartet help make lunch. The smaller gemlings were using butter knives to cut the sandwiches, supervised by Jewel. Cypress looked like she had thought about joining in, but every once in a while she glanced back at Ivy and seemed to decide to stay seated. Cypress was a lapis lazuli, her gem was almond shaped and located vertically on her forehead. She looked very similar to Lapis, though she was several shades lighter. Her sister, Ivy, was a pearl with her gem located on her back. She looked like her mother, though she had a slight blue tint. Ivy was quiet and restrained, even for a young gemling and Cypress often tried to imitate her sister.

Laz watched Cypress for a while, noticing how she looked over at the gems making lunch with a longing gaze. She liked Cypress and had hoped they could become close, but Cypress generally kept a distance from the other gemlings, except Ivy. Laz casually sat down next to Cypress hoping the gemling would entertain her. “Hi Cypress, what cha up to?” Cypress looked at Laz before glancing over at Ivy and looking down at her hands. After a moment Laz tried again. “Did you want to help make lunch? I’m sure the others would be happy to let you help too.” Cypress looked over at Ivy before shaking her head, declining Laz’s invitation. “Okay, well do you want to watch? We can sit at the table.” Laz offered Cypress her hand.

The smaller gemling pondered the offer before hesitantly reaching out to take Laz’ hand. Laz smiled slowly walking Cypress to the far end of the table, just slightly away from the quartz gemlings. Cypress watched with interest as the others made lunch. The older gemlings cutting up fruit and spreading things on bread while the younger ones cut stacks of sandwiches in quarters. It didn’t take long for the stack of sandwiches to be finished. Jay passed out the plates while the others found their seats at the table and counter.

Laz looked at Cypress and pointed at the pile of sandwiches. “Do you want some?” Cypress looked unsure, so Laz just smiled as she stacked each of the different types on her plate. She placed the plate between her and Cypress. “You can try any of them, if you don’t like it, put it back on the plate.” Cypress glanced back at Ivy. “Should we invite Ivy? She doesn’t have to eat, she can just sit with us.” Cypress nodded slowly. “Ivy, do you want to come sit with us?” Ivy looked at the table of gemlings and pressed her lips together.

“I don’t like food, thank you,” she said confidently.

“You don’t have to eat. Just come talk to us. You can sit with me and Cypress.” Ivy looked wary, but joined the gemlings at the table. The young quartz gemlings were chattering enthusiastically, interrupted by their older sisters to be reminded to chew their food, or swallow before speaking because it was gross. Amethyst and Jasper had realized this was the first time all the gemlings were completely together and decided to see how they handled it without supervision. They sat in the living room and observed from a distance.

Laz turned her attention back to Cypress, offering her one of the jam and honey quarters. “It’s strawberry jam and honey. They’re Sky’s favorite. Or you can try the peanut butter and apple, Storm likes those.” Laz took a bite of her own peanut butter and jam sandwich as Cypress timidly picked up one of the triangles. She inspected it closely before sniffing it and taking a bite. The gemling chewed thoughtfully for a moment before swallowing. She had eaten food before, but normally Pearl made it for her. She had never tried this. Cypress decided she liked the sandwich and continued to eat the triangle while her sister chattered about the sand castle they had made earlier.

Pearl and Lapis entered the beach house and Amethyst rushed to shush them. “They’re all having lunch.” Pearl and Lapis looked at each other just before Pearl opened her mouth to say something. “Shhh. All of them,” Amethyst replied before Pearl could speak. She pulled the gems towards the couch as Jasper moved over to make room. “Laz got Cypress to try a sandwich. The older ones cut the fruit and supervised the younger ones with butter knives to cut the sandwiches into quarters. And now that they’re eating, the older ones are reminding the little ones to chew with their mouths closed and be polite.” Amethyst smiled at Pearl. “Jasper and I thought we’d leave them alone and see how it played out.”

Lapis watched the gemlings with a smile while Pearl stared at Ivy. “How did you possibly get Ivy to sit at the table? Whenever Cypress is eating, she always just says, ‘I don’t like food, thank you.’” Jasper laughed as Pearl continued to look bewildered.

“Once Cypress was at the table, Laz asked if they should invite Ivy to sit with them. They told her she didn’t have to eat, that she could just sit,” Jasper shrugged.

“I’m impressed Cypress is trying something new. It usually takes her a while to try new food,” Lapis said with a smile.

“That was Laz. She tries really hard with Cypress.” As Amethyst said this, the doors to the temple opened.

“Hi Garnet!” The gemlings greeted the fusion as she exited.

“Hi everyone,” Garnet replied as she headed into the living room.

“Cypress and Laz were having a water fight earlier. Her manipulation is improving a lot,” Amethyst said to Lapis as Garnet seated herself on the floor in front of the couch.

“Oh,” Jasper looked at the other gems. “And the quartet learned a new game. They’ve started forming a fusion named Moonfire. She’s about Pearl’s height and looks like you would expect a mix of the four of them to look. Orange and purple stripes, lots of hair, etc.” Garnet raised an eyebrow as Lapis began to laugh.

“Where’d they learn that from?” Pearl said in confusion.

“Well, unless someone here fused in front of them …” Amethyst looked towards Garnet, “than it was probably Stevonnie.”

“I haven’t unfused for the youngest ones yet. But Ruby and Sapphire are dying to meet them,” Garnet said with a smile. The gems looked up at the sound of dishes rattling. The gemlings were cleaning up the lunch mess; several of the older ones washing the dishes, while the others helped the little ones wash their hands. Soon they had all returned to the living room. Ivy and Cypress ran to their parents, happy to see they were back.

“Hi baby,” Lapis said to Ivy as she crawled into her lap. Pearl planted a kiss on Cypress’ head as she leaned forward to hug her mother. In no time, the chatter level became incredibly high. It was Lapis who decided she was done. “Hey! What comes after lunch time?” She asked in a stern voice. The older gems sat quietly, hoping not answering would absolve them from participation, but the quartz quartet piped up cheerfully.

“Break! Break!”

“Yes, 2-hour break.” Amethyst sighed contently. Everyone needed a break.


	2. Chapter 2

The gemlings had finally been corralled into the temple and convinced to do something quietly. Lapis had decided to read while Jasper and Garnet disappeared as they often did. Amethyst lounged on the couch as Pearl inspected the kitchen. “Come sit down Pearly, the gemlings cleaned and I’m sure it’s good enough.”

“They actually did a really good job, Amethyst. They are becoming so responsible.” Pearl sat down next to Amethyst and smiled.

“What? You didn’t think I could teach them to clean up after themselves?”

“That’s not what I meant at all!” Pearl’s eyes widened as she stumbled through her words.

“I was kidding, P! And really, most of it is Jasper.” Pearl twisted the ribbon to her shirt around her fingers as she leaned back into the couch.

“Amethyst,” Pearl said softly. “I’ve been meaning to ask you about something. How do you …” She paused, arranging her words in her head. “How do you do it? First six of them, now four, how aren’t you exhausted every moment?” Amethyst snorted as she laughed almost bitterly. “And … how … how have you and Jasper handled things so well?”

“What do you mean?” Amethyst asked, turning to face Pearl.

“Well,” Pearl continued, “Lapis and I have just been having a difficult time … adjusting to Ivy and Cypress. We don’t have any time alone anymore. We’ve been fighting about stupid things and … and …” Amethyst could see the tears welling in Pearls eyes.

Amethyst slid over and wrapped her arms around the thin gem, pulling her into a hug. “It’s okay.” Pearl paused for a moment, trying to collect herself. She eventually pulled herself from Amethyst’s grasp and sighed.

“Cypress needs so much attention, and … well, Ivy does too. I feel like we’re never giving them enough.” Pearl slumped against the pillows beside her.

“You’re doing plenty, Pearl,” Amethyst replied softly. “Cypress and Ivy are happy and growing. You’re a great parent. But you and Lapis still deserve time for each other. Jasper and I are happy to watch them, or you could even ask Laz, she’s been very good with Cypress.” Pearl bit her lip, clearly unsure about the purple gem’s suggestions. “I’ve got an idea. Why don’t you do something with Lapis tomorrow. Ask Laz if she would like to come along to help out with Cypress and Ivy and see how it goes? I’m sure seeing them together would make you feel better about her ability to watch them. And you have an extra set of hands while you’re out. What do you think?”

“I … I suppose …” Pearl thought about the idea. “I’d have to run it by Lapis, but it might be alright.” Pearl took a deep breath and pressed her lips together as she exhaled. “We should check on them.”

“Why?” Amethyst asked, genuinely confused.

“They’ve been alone for … well, a while now and …we should see how they’re doing.”

“Pearl, they’re fine. They’re in the temple and they’re safe. They can only get into their rooms and to the doors of ours, what could be wrong? And besides, if they needed us, one of them would come and get us.” Pearl looked uncomfortable, so Amethyst continued. “But, if you’d feel better, we can go check on them.”

 

The gems walked down the hallway towards Cypress and Ivy’s room. It had been created for Lapis, but she had never been known to use it. The room was small, but perfect for the gemlings with a water puddle where Cypress could practice water manipulation and a ballet bar for Ivy. As the gems entered the room, they could see Ivy standing next to the bar, practicing the basic steps Pearl had taught her. Cypress was sitting on her bed, spinning a ball of water. Amethyst tugged Pearl back out of the room. “See, they’re fine. And part of 2-hour break is not disturbing anyone.” Pearl took one last look into the room and nodded at Amethyst.

As they started walking back towards the beach house, Pearl stopped near Amethyst’s gemlings’ room. “Do you want to check on them? I mean, after all, we’re right here.” Amethyst just shrugged as they headed towards her old room. The gems stood in the doorway and watched as Lake, Jewel, and Jay sat on the floor with their younger sisters.

“You’ve got to close your eyes, Flame,” Jay said softly.

“Why?” the small jasper asked sincerely. Jay scooted over next to her.

“Closing your eyes is just part of meditation, Flame. It helps you focus by preventing distractions. Just try it, please? Look at Amee and Lake, try to sit with your eyes closed, like them.” Flame wrinkled her nose at her sisters but eventually closed her eyes.

“Okay, now breathe in for a count of 5,” Lake said gently.

Amethyst backed out of the room with Pearl. “They’re fine too. They’re almost full grown gems, Pearl. They don’t need me to supervise them all the time.”

“Don’t exaggerate, Amethyst. They aren’t THAT grown yet.” Amethyst offered Pearl a smile that was only slightly smug as they walked back towards the beach house.

“You’ll see. It doesn’t take long.” As they settled back onto the couch, Jasper and Garnet warped back. As Amethyst glanced up at the gems, she could tell something was wrong. Garnet’s stance was stiff and Jasper had a look of displeasure on her face that worried her mate. Pearl noticed something was off as well.

“Hi Jasper, Garnet. Is something … wrong?” Jasper grunted as she entered the living room and sat on one of the chairs. Garnet was silent as she made her way to the other end of the couch.

“Lapis should be here for this,” Garnet said once she had sat next to Pearl.

“Uhmm, okay. I think she is out by the water, I’ll get her,” Pearl said before she headed out the screen door. Amethyst got up and stood beside Jasper. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but it was clear Jasper was upset and Amethyst was starting to worry. Jasper ran her fingers down Amethyst’s arm, a gesture Amethyst knew was meant to be comforting. When Pearl and Lapis returned, everyone sat, their attention on Garnet.

The fusion sighed deeply, focusing on the floor before she spoke. “When Peridot came with Jasper and Lapis, we knew that Earth was on Homeworld’s radar.” Pearl gasped softly, glancing at Lapis. Amethyst looked at Jasper but her eyes were focused on the floor. “Jasper and I were out, not far from the prime kindergarten, today and …” Garnet wasn’t sure how to finish what she was saying. “We … we saw a roaming eye.”

“A WHAT?!” Amethyst replied looking between Jasper and Garnet.

“A Homeworld ship,” Lapis replied flatly.

“Oh no, no, no. No. This, this can’t be happening!” Lapis pulled Pearl closer, trying to calm her down.

“It’s a ruby ship. Probably sent to find and retrieve Peridot. If we take it out cleanly, it will buy us time.”

“Time for what, exactly?” Amethyst said to Jasper. Jasper refused to make eye contact with her mate.

“Time to figure out what we’re going to do when the next ship comes,” Garnet replied. The gems were quiet for a long time. They were finally interrupted by the temple door opening. Storm and Sky emerged looking incredibly serious. Amethyst stood, meeting her daughters halfway.

“Hey guys, is something wrong? 2-hour break has another half hour.” Sky looked nervous, but Storm nudged her forward.

“Storm and I were playing outside the temple door. We heard Momma say something about a ruby ship and … we thought we should tell you something.” Amethyst nodded, leading the two gemlings towards the living room.

“Okay,” Amethyst said after settling back in on the floor next to Jasper. “What did you want to tell us?”

“Sky and I have been having weird dreams.” Storm paused for a second to look at her sister before continuing. “The dreams are weird. But it’s also weird because … we have the same dream.” Garnet looked at the gemlings curiously.

“You are both dreaming the same thing?” Sky nodded.

“What are the dreams about?” Jasper asked. The gemlings stood for a moment and as Storm’s gem began to glow, Sky pulled something from it. When the gemlings moved to the table it was clear Sky had retrieved drawings. They spread them across the table as the other gems looked on apprehensively.

“In our dreams, there are a lot of gems. Some we’ve seen before, and some we haven’t.” Sky started.

“We drew them all out. They look like this.” Storm laid the gem drawings out next to each other. The gems were all astonished to see what they had drawn. Four Gems, each in double, one by Storm and one by Sky, but no matter which gemling drew them, they looked the same. There was Garnet, Opal, Stevonnie, and Malachite. The background was drawn with browns, reds, and golds.

“We’re all fighting something,” Sky pointed to another picture of a gem, a very large ruby. “Them, we’re fighting them. Garnet and Stevonnie, and these gems here.” Sky pointed at Malachite and Opal.

“You both had this dream?” Jasper asked the gemlings. They nodded slowly. “And did you feel strange in the dream?”

“We both felt bigger,” Storm said.

“And my arms looked weird,” Sky chimed in. “They were green.” Garnet looked at Amethyst and nodded.

“I think,” Amethyst said slowly, “your dream is … like Garnet’s future vision. The ruby ship is going to be at the beta kindergarten. It has those colors.” Amethyst moved to sit between the gemlings pointing at each of the pictures. “Rubies will fuse to fight, making themselves bigger and stronger. The rest of these gems are … well they’re us. That is Malachite, the fusion of Momma and Lapis. That’s Opal, a fusion of me and Pearl. And you two are probably fused as well. You’d have a shared perspective. It’s why you both have the same dream.”

“But why are there so many of us for so few rubies? And where are the other gemlings?” Pearl asked. No one responded.

“When did you start having these dreams?” Garnet asked the gemlings.

“About a week ago.”

“We need to have a meeting. Storm, please go get the older gemlings. Sky, can you check on the younger ones and make sure they are doing something that will keep them busy? I’ll call Steven and Connie.” The gemlings nodded at Garnet before heading back into the temple.

 

\---

 

Everyone was tense but quiet as they sat crowded into the living room. Garnet had re-explained the situation, but it only left more questions. The children were still trying to take in what Garnet had said while the gems looked at each other, clearly worried.

“Why are you all fused?” Laz asked after carefully looking at the pictures her sisters drew.

“I think we’re trying to protect our identities,” Lapis said. “We don’t want the rubies to be able to report back whom we are.” Amethyst moved to the middle of the floor and called the gemlings to sit with her. She really didn’t want to do this but she knew she had to.

“This is bad, guys. And we need to work as a family to make sure everyone is okay. Each of you will have a job we need you to do and they are all very import, but different. You’re almost grown up and I need to know I can trust you to do the jobs you’re given.” Amethyst got up and stood between Jasper and Garnet. “Laz.” She beckoned the gemling towards here. “The little ones won’t come on this mission. You have done so well with Cypress and Ivy, they trust you. I want you to take care of them. Keep them in the temple, keep them safe, and don’t let them know anything is wrong. Will you do that for us?”

“Yes,” Laz said lowing her head slightly.

“Good.” Amethyst kissed the top of Laz’s head before she went back to sit down. “Lake and Jewel.” The gemlings approached Amethyst nervously. “You two are responsible for the rest of your sisters. I know they can be a handful, but you’ve been watching them since they were very little. Will you do this?”

“Yes,” the gemlings replied together.

Amethyst nodded before hugging them. “You’ve got this.” As the two sat back down Amethyst looked over at Jasper.

“Jay,” Jasper said gently. Jay looked pensive, slowly pulling her eyes from the floor to meet Jasper’s. As Jay approached Jasper, her facial expression became more stern. “I’m asking you to guard the bubble room. If we have to send you guys messages, we will send them by bubbling objects.” Jay nodded as Jasper wrapped her arms around her daughter.

“Lake, Jewel, Jay, Laz …” Garnet spoke up. “All four of you are responsible for guarding our home. You are trained fighters; you are prepared for this. I don’t know if you will have to, but you need to be ready just in case.”

After a short silence Laz looked at her sisters before looking at Garnet, Amethyst, and Jasper. “We’ve got this. We’ll protect the temple.” She looked over towards Pearl and Lapis. “We’ll protect our sisters.” Amethyst nodded at her daughters before looking over at Storm and Sky.

“Sky, Storm, you two will be with us at Beta. You’ll need to fuse. Can you do it?” Sky and Storm both stood and slowly backed away from their sisters. Sky looked at Storm with determination, offering her hand. Storm took her sister’s hand and was pulled towards her. Amethyst watched, amazed by their grace. It seemed like they had performed this dance before … it seemed like Amethyst had seen this dance before. Wait, she had. It was Lapis and Jasper’s fusion dance. Amethyst watched as Sky danced just like her mother, confidently supporting Storm as she leaned back with the grace and flexibility of Lapis. And with a flash, the two were fused.

The gems stared at the fusion in awe, the room was silent as Steven took a breath and whispered “Malachite.” Everyone was thinking it, the fusion looked remarkably similar, the thick mound of white hair, the beautifully pattered skin. She only had 2 legs to Malachite’s four and was much smaller, but the similarity was incredible. Finally, Garnet found her voice. She reached for the fusion’s hand and asked, “What’s your name?”

The gemling fusion looked around the room as she spoke. “A-azurite. My … my name is Azurite.”

“How? How did you do that dance? How do you look like her?” Lapis said backing away from the fusion. Azurite’s eyes widened as she pulled her hand from Garnet’s grasp, looking towards Jasper and Amethyst.

“Azurite, it’s okay,” Amethyst said gently. She beckoned the fusion and she quickly moved to Amethyst’s side. The purple gem ran her hand through Azurite’s hair hoping to reassure her. “I need to talk to Storm and Sky for a bit, but we’re all happy to have met you. We will see you again this afternoon and you can meet some of the other fusions, okay?” Azurite nodded at Amethyst and with a bright flash of light, Storm and Sky returned.

“Sky, Storm, where did you learn that dance?” Jasper asked curiously, obviously less upset than Lapis was.

“In the dream.” The gemlings looked up as Pearl walked Lapis outside. “Did we do something wrong?” Sky whispered. “Is Lapis upset with us?” They looked from Jasper to Amethyst and back.

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong,” Jasper said quietly. “Remember how I told you Lapis and I didn’t like each other much when we first met?” The gemlings nodded but still seemed worried. “Well, we fused once. And we stayed that way for a long time. We were unhappy and … we weren’t very kind to each other.” Jasper took a deep breath. “The dance you performed … that is our fusion dance. The fusion you formed looks very much like ours, like Malachite. It makes sense, you’re our daughters. I just don’t think Lapis expected it.” Jasper headed to the door of the beach house. “Let me talk to her.”

 

Lapis had fled to the water. She stood, several feet from the shore, mindlessly manipulating the waves. She had pushed Pearl away, asking to be left alone, but Jasper approached her anyway.

“Lapis,” she said sternly. “They’re gemlings produced from our mating. Sky is a water gem. Storm is a jasper. I know you aren’t really surprised that they look like us when they fuse.” Lapis looked up at Jasper, her eyebrows furrowed.

“No! No, I’m not.” As she spoke, all the fire dissipated from Lapis’ voice. “How did they know our fusion dance?” She said more gently this time. Jasper sat on a rock watching the tides Lapis was creating.

“How did we know our fusion dance? They learned it from their dream. But you know it was somewhere inside them.” The two were silent, both deep in thought. “We’re gonna have to fuse, Lapis.” Jasper watched as Lapis cringed. “Malachite has her problems … but, we’re strong together. And we’ll be so much stronger now!” Jasper stood and walked into the water towards Lapis. “As friends.” She offered Lapis her hand and the water gem began to giggle.

“Since when did you start sounding like Steven?”

“When I had to be the one to save you from yourself, water nymph,” Jasper replied with a laugh. Lapis took Jasper’s hand and walked back with her to the beach.

“What if I can’t control my power? What if I …”

“We’re friends Lapis, we want the best for each other. It will be different this time.”

“You’re right. It will be different.”


	3. Chapter 3

They stood on the beach paired with their fusion partners, trying to solidify a plan. Finally, they agreed to all fuse before heading to the beta kindergarten. Jasper tentatively offered her hand to Lapis as Sky offered hers to Storm. The four gems danced in tandem and moments later, Malachite and Azurite stood before them. Malachite looked around and huffed under her breath.

“Finally. I figured you were going to bench me permanently after Lapis went power crazy. Or you know, Jasper encouraging me to wrecking your …”

“Hey!” Amethyst said sharply before glancing towards Azurite. “You’ve got a problem, we’ll talk about it later. Right now we’ve got rubies to find.” Malachite crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

“Nice to see you, Malachite,” Garnet said with little sincerity. “Your … prominent personality suggests Lapis and Jasper aren’t fighting for control any longer.”

“Nope. I’m 100% in charge,” Malachite replied with a grin. Amethyst approached Azurite and addressed the gemling fusion.

“How do you feel, Azurite? Can you call your weapon?” The young fusion took a deep breath before calling full chest armor and a spiked three tailed flail with large jasper points at each end.

“Great job,” Amethyst replied, offering a smile to the fusion.

“Alright, I’m tired of being on this beach.” With that, Malachite’s wings opened and she flew off. The gems called after her, but she wasn’t interested in their pleas.

“She’s almost as bad as Sugilite,” Pearl muttered.

“There’s nothing wrong with Sugilite,” Amethyst replied defensively.

“She is out of control!”

“Guys …” Steven whined gently.

“Pearl, don’t start with me.”

“I’m just saying, Malachite doesn’t seem to be able to control herself either.”

“Well half of that fusion is YOUR mate. Maybe YOU should try to get her under control.”

“Enough.” Garnet said sternly. “Steven, Connie, you’re up next. You two cool off because after them it’s your turn.” Amethyst fumed silently as she watched Connie stand and move towards Steven. The two humans giggled as their fusion formed. “Azurite, this is Stevonnie.” The gemling fusion stared at Stevonnie as they called their shield.

“Storm and Sky know you!” She said quietly.

“Well, of course they do! It’s nice to meet you Azurite,” Stevonnie replied with a smile. They looked towards Pearl and Amethyst. “Is it giant woman time?” Pearl huffed quietly while Amethyst crossed her arms.

“Malachite,” Garnet began, “Is a fusion of your mates. I’m sure she will inherently respond better to Opal than she has to any one of us.” Stevonnie looked from Amethyst to Pearl before Azurite spoke up.

“Please Amethyst? You two have to help. We have to make sure the rubies don’t hurt the others.” Amethyst sighed.

“Of course, Azurite. We are going to make sure that nothing happens to your sisters or anyone else. Promise.” Amethyst turned towards Pearl, offering her hand as the tall gem spun elegantly towards Amethyst. In a flash, Opal stretched and smiled at the fusions before walking a short way down the beach.

“Malachite,” Opal said in her inherently smooth and soft voice. The fusion stood waiting while the others looked on.

“Maybe she should try again,” Stevonnie said looking over at Garnet.

“No need to.” Eventually, Malachite returned to the beach, landing in front of Opal. The two had a short conversation the others were unable to hear before they returned to the group.

“Are we all on the same page now?” Garnet asked everyone. She received nods from each of the fusions. “I am going to check on the gemlings and then we should head out.”

 

The fusions entered the Beta Kindergarten cautiously, avoiding the injector heads and various metal parts left in the sand. Malachite and Garnet led the way while Opal stayed behind them, keeping an eye on Stevonnie and Azurite.

“It’s so much brighter than Prime,” Stevonnie whispered softly.

“It’s a desert, halfling,” Malachite replied with a smile. “Lots of sun, lots of bright colors reflecting the light. Too bad deserts are also incredibly dry.”

“But, you’ve got other power. Besides … you know … water manipulation,” Azurite whispered to Malachite.

“No worries, little green. I’ve got plenty of power.” Malachite turned towards Opal and winked before continuing to following Garnet. Stevonnie watched Malachite’s display and looked back at Opal. They wondered how exactly Opal felt about Malachite. Amethyst and Pearl did deeply care for Jasper and Lapis, but how did they feel specifically about Malachite? And what were Opal’s feelings? Just as Stevonnie was about to ask, Opal stopped abruptly, resting a hand on Stevonnie’s shoulder.

“The roaming eye,” Garnet mumbled as she scanned the area.

“Stay here,” Opal said to Stevonnie as she elegantly scaled an injector to see better. Garnet cautiously approached the roaming eye while Malachite closed both sets of eyes.

Azurite looked to Stevonnie and whispered “What are they doing?” Stevonnie knelt low, beckoning the young fusion down towards the sand.

“Garnet it checking out the roaming eye, Opal is getting a better view of our surrounds from above.”

“What about Malachite?” Stevonnie placed their finger over their lips, quieting the gemling fusion.

“Malachite is listening,” Stevonnie whispered. “We should too.” Garnet exited the ruby ship, beginning to mouth ‘all clear’ when Malachite’s eyes shot open.

“Opal!” In one bound Malachite was halfway up the injector before her wings spread. Opal was quick, dodging the ruby attack and gracefully sliding down the leg of the injector while Malachite went for a comet attack.

“Garnet!” Stevonnie shouted, throwing their shield towards the fusion’s head. Garnet ducked and a second ruby fusion was struck by Stevonnie’s shield. Opal grabbed Azurite as she ran towards the other side of the kindergarten. Garnet stood in front of Opal and Azurite, all three fusions had drawn their weapons. Stevonnie was drawing their sword as a third ruby fusion began to charge at them from behind.

“Stevonnie!!” The gemling fusion screamed closing her eyes and throwing her hands out in front of her. As she did, a wall emerged from the ground separating Stevonnie from the ruby fusion. Azurite opened her eyes and looked down at her hands. The others were equally as astounded, but there was no time to dwell on the newfound power. Malachite was thrown against a wall as two of the ruby fusions picked themselves up. The gems were at a standoff, three large ruby fusions stared down the Earth fusions for a moment before one of the rubies spoke.

“Where’s Jasper? And for that matter, who are you?” The Earth gems didn’t speak. “We have been sent to retrieve Jasper. Where is she?” One set of Malachite’s eyes flinched noticeably, but the fusion stayed quiet.

“Who sent you?” Garnet said confidently, staring down the ruby fusions. Ruby number 1 glared back at Garnet while ruby fusions 2 and 3 laughed.

“We have been sent by the Diamond Authority to retrieve a jasper solider that was sent on a mission here,” the first ruby replied.

“Not that we need to explain ourselves to you,” mumbled the third one.

Opal adjusted her bow, aiming at an angle that would strike two of the three ruby fusions. She calmly tilted her head and spoke. “This is not a gem controlled planet. The Diamonds have no authority here, now stand down.”

Stevonnie gestured with their sword, “Leave now, or else!”

“Or else what?” The second ruby said with a smirk.

Malachite flexed her arms, glaring at the ruby fusions. “Or else this,” she growled. Without warning, Malachite went for a comet attack while Opal fired arrows sweeping across the other direction. Stevonnie and Garnet charged forward, taking on the first ruby fusion. As the third ruby ran towards Azurite, she quickly followed up Opal’s attack with a flail strike.

With minimal fighting, the three ruby fusions were corned and two of them had dispersed to their individual forms. “Oh geez,” Malachite mumbled as she watched 8 ruby soldiers cower while the fusion left stared down Garnet. “’Little green, think you could use that new found power to cage the runts?” Azurite looked confused as Malachite gestured towards the huddled group of rubies.

“Oh, uhm yeah, I can try at least.” Azurite took a deep breath and reached out in front of her. The sand began to move slowly, but eventually, she formed cells, enclosing 1-2 rubies in each.

“Now,” Malachite said to the remaining ruby fusion. “Why are you so concerned about Jasper?”

“Orders,” the ruby replied. Stevonnie rolled their eyes.

“Well she’s not here so now what?” Garnet replied, irritated this was going on for so long but getting them nowhere.

“Look,” Stevonnie said. “Either you leave, and never come back … or we’re going to have to bubble you.”

“Ha! We aren’t leaving until we find Jasper.”

“Jasper isn’t here!” Garnet said, almost yelling.

“How do you know so much about Jasper anyway?” The ruby fusion thought out loud. “If she isn’t here, where is she?” Malachite pushed towards the ruby fusion and glared down at the comparatively small gem.

“Jasper,” Malachite said calmly, “isn’t here. And we know that because we ARE here. Do you SEE Jasper?” Malachite gestured as she spoke. “And what if Jasper WAS here? What were you planning to do exactly?”

“Rescue her of course! We’re gonna bring her back to Homeworld and become heroes!” Malachite chuckled as looked over at the caged ruby soldiers.

“So naive. You really think a jasper soldier would just sit around waiting for a band of rubies to ‘save’ her? If this jasper you’re talking about really needed saving by the likes of you, she deserves to stay abandoned on this pathetic rock.”

“Malachite,” Opal whispered in a soft, warm tone. At the sound of Opal’s voice, Malachite pulled it together.

“My point then. Your jasper isn’t here. If she ever WAS here, she certainly wouldn’t have waited for some rubies to rescue her. Try space. She’s probably slowly working her way back to Homeworld. I’d turn the gravity engine off that thing and cruise back a slow speed to make sure you don’t miss her.” Malachite waved at the roaming eye as she turned and started to walk away. “Little green, let them go. They need to be on their way. They shouldn’t make a fine gem like a jasper wait.”

Azurite and Stevonnie looked at Garnet who glanced at Opal. Opal looked from Malachite back to Garnet and nodded. “Let ‘em go,” Garnet said to Azurite. The gemling fusion pushed her hands forward, turning the bars back into sand. Malachite stood at the door of the roaming eye and watched as the rubies filed back into their ship. She turned and stared intently at the ruby fusion once more.

“You’re lucky we’re letting you off this planet. Don’t come back.”

“Uhmm, well, yes. Thank you,” The ruby fusion said before boarding the ship. Finally, the door to the roaming eye closed and the ship took off. The gems were silent, watching until there was no sign of the roaming eye left.


	4. Chapter 4

Malachite looked around the beta kindergarten before focusing on Azurite. She ran her hand over the gemling fusion’s hair and offered her a smile. “Good job little green. I’m proud of you.” Azurite smiled up at Malachite just as the fusion offered her a nod and turned away. Malachite spread her wings as she planted her feet into the sand and jumped straight into the air. Azurite watched in confusion as Malachite flew away.

After a moment, Garnet turned to look at the others. “Alright, let’s go home.” Opal could see Azurite was struggling to understand everything that was happening. She knelt and opened her arms, beckoning Azurite. Opal gave the gemling fusion a hug before picking her up and carrying her as they headed back to the temple.

Once back home, Garnet stood on the beach and looked at the fusions. “We should tell the gemlings we’re home and that everything is alright.” Stevonnie nodded and with a flash, Connie and Steven were standing on the beach. Azurite followed and Storm and Sky appeared. Garnet looked towards Steven and Connie. “I’m going to go talk to Lake, Jewel, Jay, and Laz. I think Sky and Storm could use some company.” The three turned to see Storm and Sky sitting in the sand side by side, talking quietly.

Steven nodded. “You can count on us,” Connie replied. The two humans headed over to sit with the gemlings.

“I’m going to speak with Malachite,” Opal said before turning and walking down the beach.

 

Connie sat near Sky. “You guys seem upset.” Storm looked up, obviously something was bothering her, but Sky continued to stare at the sand. “Do you want to talk?” Steven moved closer to Storm and placed his arm around her.

“Why did Malachite leave? Did we do something wrong?” Sky didn’t look up as she spoke.

“Was she mad at us?” Storm asked, looking over at Connie.

“I don’t think it was you,” Steven said gently. Connie put her hand on Sky’s leg and the gemling looked up at her.

“How does it feel to be Azurite?”

Sky shrugged. “It’s different. I dunno. There’s Storm and there’s me, then there’s her.”

“She’s not just me and Sky,” Storm responded. “She has her own personality and that’s kinda cool.”

“But it’s different, interacting with others as Azurite,” Sky whispered.

“I think it feels the same way when Steven and I fuse. Stevonnie isn’t just me and Steven. They are someone different, someone new, and they have their own personality.” The gemlings nodded. “And it’s the same with Lapis and Jasper. I think Malachite needs some time to sort out how it feels to be herself. I don’t think you’ve done anything wrong.” Sky leaned over and rested her head on Connie’s shoulder. “She said she was proud of you and I believe she was.”

“Opal went to talk with her, I’m sure she can help sort things out,” Steven said to the gemlings with a smile. “While we wait, let’s go see your sisters. I’m sure they would really like to hear about what happened at Beta.”

\---

Opal stretched as she walked down the beach. She was enjoying the sun, turning her face up towards it as she took a deep breath with her eyes closed. Earth was such a wonderful place, she often felt the need to breathe. Of course, she didn’t have to, but it felt good to let the air flow in and out of her body. Opal phased away her shoes and walked barefoot at the edge of the tide, the cool, wet sand a contrast to the sun against her face.

She reached the rock wall near the far end of the beach and delicately waded into the water. As she rounded the wall she wasn’t surprised to see Malachite on the other side, kneeling in the sand, her arms wrapped around her body. Opal sat with her, their bodies close but not touching, Opal content to watch the water. Malachite sighed deeply before she spoke. “Why are you here?” Her question sounded more curious than angry. Opal continued to watch the water.

“Would you prefer if I left?” Opal asked.

Malachite immediately smiled to herself, but thought for a moment before answering. “No, I would like it if you stayed.”

Opal nodded before glancing over at Malachite. “That’s why I’m here.”

Malachite sighed before slowly unwrapping her arms from her body. “They don’t like or trust me. What’s the point of even trying?” Opal turned to Malachite and raised her eyebrows slowly in question. “The gems. They don’t like me, they don’t want me around.”

“I like you,” Opal said reassuringly. “And Azurite seemed very fond of you.”

Malachite huffed. “She’s just a kid.”

“And she seemed very fond of you,” Opal replied. “Her age doesn’t change that.” Opal smiled and reached for Malachite’s hand. “Give it time. You’ve barely had a chance to figure out who you are. They will come around.” They sat in silence, Opal’s words sinking into Malachite’s being. After a while, Opal stood, offering Malachite one of her hands. Malachite stood grabbing Opal’s extended hand and pulling her off balance, catching her bridal style in her arms. Wings outstretched, Malachite took off, flying them both back to the temple.

They landed in the sand, both giggling. Malachite placed Opal on the ground and smiled. “Thank you,” she said. Opal pulled Malachite into a hug.

“You’re special Malachite. Don’t forget that.” A bright light slowly began to build until Jasper and Lapis were left standing on the beach, each with their mate in their arms.

\---

It was late that evening and everything had finally calmed down. The older gemlings had wound down from hearing Sky and Storm’s exciting stories and the little ones were asleep in their rooms. The gems had decided to ‘wait and see’ what would happen regarding the rubies and everyone just wanted a chance to take a breath.

Amethyst flopped face down onto the bed, turning her head after a while to look at Jasper. Jasper was sitting with her legs pulled towards her chest, deep in thought. “You alright, Jasp?” Amethyst asked, her face half buried in a pillow. When Jasper didn’t answer, Amethyst looked up at her mate. “Was it harder than you thought it would be?” This time, Jasper turned to look at Amethyst, tilting her head in thought.

“No. I just … I feel bad for her.”

Amethyst leaned against her forearms and stared at Jasper. “Lapis?” She asked, sounding baffled.

“What? No! Why would I feel bad for Lapis?” Amethyst threw Jasper a look that said Exactly. “Malachite. I feel bad for Mala. She was so excited when she first formed, but …” Jasper laid down on the bed facing Amethyst. “Lapis’ anger was overwhelming; Malachite was forced to take a backseat. I can only imagine what it must have felt like for her. Her body and mind being taken over by a part of her she didn’t want to be in control.” Amethyst reached over and wrapped her arm around Jasper’s belly.

“She fought us, you know.” Jasper said with a sigh. “She was so new, so excited, she didn’t quite understand what was going on. Eventually she realized she didn’t like it and she stood up for herself. But, she was no match for us. Malachite’s feelings were shoved out of sight. This time, when she formed, she was bitter. And I don’t blame her. That’s why she flew off, she refused to do anything that would benefit me or Lapis.”

Amethyst pulled her mate closer as she thought about what it must have been like for Malachite. Sugilite’s personality was far too big to ever be drowned out, but she supposed it could have happened to Opal. Opal was such a quiet force; when Amethyst and Pearl went at it, Opal sat back and just took everything in. But Pearl and Amethyst never could supersede Opal, their fusion would fall apart before Opal would let that happen. Amethyst wondered if Malachite realized she had that power, that not only could Jasper and Lapis decide they no longer wanted to be her, but she could decide she no longer wanted them to be her.

“I think she really appreciated Opal’s comforting words,” Jasper said with her eyes closed.

Amethyst smiled. “I’m glad. I got the feeling Opal really thought Malachite was something special.”


	5. Chapter 5

Amethyst woke to Jasper shaking her. “Am? Am. Amethyst!” Amethyst stared at Jasper, still engrossed in the dream she was just having. Suddenly, she sat up, pulling her arm to her chest. “You’re okay,” Jasper whispered. “We’re in our room, in the temple.” Amethyst didn’t speak, she didn’t trust her voice. Jasper gently tugged at her arm, pulling the purple gem into her lap and wrapping her arms around her. “I’ve got you.”

Jasper had woken when Amethyst had hit her in the back. The purple gem swung her arm, as if she was struggling to break free of someone’s hold. Just before she woke, Amethyst shouted, her voice draped in terror. Jasper had never seen Amethyst wake from a nightmare quite like this. The purple gem would often dream of inconsequential things, some of them even rather unpleasant, but she never looked quite so panicked or distraught.

Amethyst held Jasper tightly, her head buried in her mate’s shoulder. She felt like she couldn’t breathe, like she needed to but couldn’t. She wanted the comfort of being in Jasper’s arms, but it also reminded her of being captured, being held down. She opened her eyes and focused on the stripes across Jasper’s arm. Her fingers traced them gently as she reminded herself that Jasper was not an enemy. Jasper loved her. Jasper forgave her. Jasper saw _value_ in her; Jasper didn’t believe she was worthless. 

When Amethyst seemed to calm, Jasper ran her fingers through the silver hair, dragging her nails gently against her mate’s scalp. “Amethyst,” she said softly. The purple gem slowly pulled away, looking back at Jasper. “Are you okay?” Jasper didn’t believe the slight nod Amethyst gave her, but nodded back just the same. “Do you want to go back to sleep?” Amethyst shook her head, dismissing her mate and freeing herself from Jasper’s arms. 

As Amethyst sat on the edge of the bed, she shivered. It was an odd feeling, unlike anything she had felt before and as quickly as it came, it went. Jasper watched her mate cautiously. She knew when humans did that, it was uncontrolled and usually related to being cold, but gems didn’t get cold. When a gem shivered like that, there was another cause. 

“That’s the third time you’ve done that,” Jasper eventually said as she watched Amethyst. 

“Done what?” Amethyst asked, testing out her voice and blinking, looking perplexed. Jasper was at least happy to hear Amethyst speak.

“Shivered.” Amethyst looked back blankly. “The thing where your form shakes and you feel … ” 

“Yeah, I know what shivering is Jasper,” Amethyst snapped. Her voice sounded horse, but more intact than it had. “I wasn’t shivering,” she replied more gently. Jasper slid over and sat next to Amethyst. “It’s this weird feeling, I can’t explain it. And I don’t know why it’s happening.” 

Jasper reached for Amethyst’s shoulder and the purple gem wince slightly. “Are you in pain?” Jasper asked sincerely, retracting her hand. Amethyst just shook her head no. “You sure?” Jasper looked skeptical, especially after Amethyst’s recoil at her touch. 

“It isn’t pain exactly. I dunno what it is.” Amethyst reached for her shoulder, rubbing her wrist against her gem. “But I’m alright. Really.” 

“What were you dreaming about?” Jasper was becoming increasingly concerned. She knew something was very wrong, no matter if Amethyst wanted to admit it or not. The weird waking from a nightmare, the shivering, recoiling from her touch, the repeated touching of her gem, something was not right. 

“Ah, I was …” Amethyst looked away from Jasper, this time running her fingertips over her gem. “I was on a ship.” 

“Like … a boat?” Jasper asked, confused as to why Amethyst would be dreaming about a boat.

“No, Jasp, a _space_ ship.” Jasper grew more concerned. “It was dark, but … They were holding me down in a chair. My arms behind my back, they pushed my head back.” Amethyst squeezed her eyes closed. “They were after my gem.” 

“It’s okay, shhh, you don’t have to keep going.” Jasper didn’t try to touch Amethyst this time. “It was just a dream, it’s over.” 

“No! It wasn’t just a dream.” Amethyst clutched at her gem with both hands. “I can still feel it! It still feels like they’re after me; like they’re going to shatter me!” Now Amethyst was sobbing, her eyes half closed.

“Amethyst, you’re safe here. It’s just me.” Jasper reached out towards Amethyst slowly, trying to keep eye contact with her mate. “It’s just me.” She rested her hand on Amethyst’s shoulder and when the purple gem didn’t pull away, she moved her hand up to her neck. “Come here,” Jasper barely whispered pushing Amethyst towards her. In what seemed like a moment of clarity, Amethyst’s eyes opened widely before she threw herself into her mate’s arms, her own arms still covering her gem. Jasper pulled Amethyst against her chest. “It was just a dream, love. Shhh, it was just a dream. We’re safe, together.” 

After what seemed like hours, Amethyst’s sobs slowed. Her breathing began to match Jasper’s as she calmed down. Eventually, Jasper felt Amethyst’s arms slowly wrap around her waist. Their bodies fit together better that way, and Jasper let out a tired sigh. “I’m sorry,” Amethyst whispered, her face buried against Jasper’s chest. 

“It’s okay,” Jasper replied. Amethyst could feel her mate’s chest vibrate.

“I guess stuff with those rubies bothered me.” 

“I’m always here to protect you,” Jasper whispered. “Just like you always protected me.” 

\---

Jay woke to something poking at her arm. She yawned as she rolled over and saw Sunrae standing at the side of her bed. “Hi Rayrae, what are you doing out of bed?” Sunrae pouted, but continued to stare at the floor. She was much more timid than her littermates, but Sunrae was clearly fond of her big sister Jay. “Did something happen?” Jay asked gently. 

Sunrae pursed her lips together before shaking her head. “My room’s scary. Sleep with JJ?” The quartet liked repetition. It is how Sunrae became Rayrae and Jay became JJ. Of course, all the gemlings had nicknames among themselves, but several names had been acquired due to the quartet’s limited speech. 

“Yes, Rayrae, you can sleep with me.” Jay pulled the blanket down and let her sister climb into the bed. The quartz gemlings inherently preferred sleeping together, but each had their own bedmate preferences. Lake and Jewel had chosen each other when they were young and had continued to prefer each other’s company. Storm was a restless sleeper and liked to tell everyone she rather sleep alone, but they all knew that she slept better when Sky and/or Laz was with her. While Jay didn’t mind sleeping alone, she had often been found cuddling with Sky when they were younger. More recently, Sunrae had been finding her way out of the quartet cuddle pile to join Jay. 

“What scared you?” Jay asked her sister as the little one stretched out along the bed. 

“Lala talks when she sleeps,” Sunrae said as she used her sister’s hip as a pillow. 

Jay just giggled. “Alright, well, go to sleep now.” 

“’night JJ.” 

\---

Cypress sat on her bed spinning a ball of water, the dull glow of her gem illuminating her half of the room. She always seemed to have a difficult time sleeping, even though as a young gemling, she needed to sleep. Instead of sleeping, she fidgeted, at least that’s what Ivy called it. Ivy seemed to inherit more traditional pearl behavioral patterns from her mother. She was incredibly calm and restrained, showing few facial expressions and controlling her movements almost militantly. It sometimes seemed odd among the rambunctious quartz gemlings and the curious lapis lazuli babes. And it was this general dynamic that caused Cypress inner turmoil. 

Cypress knew she and Ivy were different from the other gemlings. She hadn’t quite yet figured out that many of their differences stemmed from Jasper carrying her sisters, but she was still young. What Cypress did know was that she was not a quartz, and she looked to her confident littermate, Ivy, for clues on appropriate behavior. Unfortunately, these clues were often in conflict with how Cypress wished to behave. She longed to be outgoing and curious like Laz and Sky, but she was sure that she wasn’t supposed to behave like them, though she hadn’t quite grasped why not. 

Pearl peaked her head into her gemlings’ room and noticed Cypress was awake. Quietly, as not to wake Ivy, she entered and sat down on the gemling’s bed. Cypress put away the ball of water. “It’s bed time Cypress,” Pearl said gently. The gemling nodded at her mother. “You need your sleep, now let me tuck you in.” Pearl tucked in her daughter before running her finger over Cypress’ gem. “Night my beautiful daughter.” 

Once Pearl had left the room, Cypress reached under her pillow and pulled out the worry stone Laz had given her. It was a pale green piece of sea glass that had been worn down in the middle. Laz had found it on the beach just before she noticed Cypress, off sitting alone. Laz offered her the sea glass and told her to keep it safe and it would help her feel stronger. Cypress didn’t quite understand how a piece of sea glass would make her strong, but she liked that it had come from Laz and was determined to keep it safe. The gemling had found that she liked the texture of the glass and would often rub it between her fingers to distract her from uncomfortable feelings. Recently she had found it helped her get to sleep too. 

The room was eerily quiet. Her sisters’ rooms were never this quiet, Cypress noted. There was always ambient sound. Jasper’s litters were all accustom to breathing, and the sound filled even the quietest room. Cypress wasn’t sure what _breathing_ even was, she only knew it was another quality that separated her and Ivy from the other gemlings. Cyrpess clicked her tongue to the roof of her mouth a few times, listening to the sound it made while she rubbed at her worry stone. Soon after, she fell asleep.


	6. Chapter 6

Laz tapped Cyrpess’ shoulder and pressed her finger to her lips. As the small gemling watched, Laz tiptoed up to her sister Sky, who was sitting on the beach. Without warning, she launched a powerful blast of seawater at her sister leaving the poor gemling dripping wet. Sky didn’t turn around, but Cypress had a feeling Laz was going to regret what she did. The tiny lapis lazuli backed away from her bigger sisters as Sky finally turned, looking incredibly angry. In an instant, Laz was surrounded by a cloud of sand. She couldn’t see and her habit of breathing was causing her to cough. Blindly, she tried to get out but she wasn’t sure which direction was out. She tried to summon her wings, but there was an incredible downforce, preventing her from getting anywhere. Then, she felt herself come to an abrupt halt, slamming into the ground. 

The sand cleared and Sky stood over her sister, kicking at her softly. “Still breath’n Laz?” Sky turned and winked at Cypress while her sister groaned. 

“What the hell did you do?” Laz whimpered as she tried to free her arms and legs wrapped in Sky’s flail. 

“Language Laz,” Sky said softly as she glanced at Cypress. “Cypress isn’t a quartz ya know.” She nodded her head and her flail disappeared, unbinding her sister. “I was going to surprise everyone at practice, but you made it too easy. Know how I’ve got electric powers? They’re actually electrostatic powers! I can move things that build up an electric charge.” Sky grinned at her sister, “Like sand.” 

“That’s fuc--- uhhhh that’s really cool!” Laz said as Sky helped her up. The two lapis lazulis of the oldest litter had begun to embrace their desire to play fight. It was something to do and made them feel powerful, like their sisters and their parents. 

“I’ve got a great idea! Cypress, do you want to team with Sky and me tomorrow at practice? We haven’t tried an all lapis lazuli team.” Cypress glanced timidly between her sisters. 

“It will be fun. And you’d be such a great addition to the lazuli squad! What do you say?” Sky smiled gently at her small sister. 

Cypress looked between Sky and Laz before focusing on the ground. She moved her hands slightly, signing Ivy’s name. 

Laz squinted, trying to remember what Cypress’s sign was for. “Oh! Ivy. Well, Ivy doesn’t usually want to join a team fight in practice.” Cypress looked away shyly. “Cy, are you worried she’ll feel left out if you join us?” The young gemling barely shrugged her shoulders.

“No worries!” Sky replied. “We can invite her too. She can be an unofficial lazuli!” 

\---

The following day brought two rather excited lapis lazuli gemlings bouncing on the beach as individual exercises concluded. Amethyst and Pearl noticed, but kept it to themselves. Once it was time for group sparing, Laz was ready to speak up. They had spoken to Ivy and she wasn’t interested. Cypress looked unsure, but agreed when Laz offered her hand to the small gem. 

“So, we thought,” Laz addressed the group, gesturing towards Sky and Cypress, “that maybe we could try a matchup of the lazuli squad vs the jaspers?” Pearl looked horrified while Garnet’s facial expression continued to stay neutral. Lapis looked thoughtful until she glanced over at Amethyst and Jasper. 

“Pearl,” she said, nudging her mate. “Look.” Jasper and Amethyst had matching grins they were unable to hide. The two were incredibly excited to see Laz and Sky embrace their power and strength. They had both come such a long way.

“Do it up!” Amethyst said to her daughters. “I think this is a great idea!” 

“Two against four is hardly fair,” Pearl pointed out. 

“No, there’s three of us,” Sky pointed out confidently. “Cypress is old enough to spar and we certainly would never exclude her from the lazuli squad.” Laz put her arm around Cypress and the small gemling smiled. 

“But …” Pearl was cut off by Lapis who pulled her aside and spoke softly. She reminded her mate that they moved training to the beach to have enough space for the younger gemlings to also train. Lapis felt it was important for her daughters to embrace their abilities and learn to control them early. When they returned to the group, Pearl just nodded. 

The jasper gemlings huddled to discuss their decision. “This will be too easy,” Jewel said to her littermates. 

“It isn’t even fair,” Lake replied. 

“Guys,” Storm said glancing over at the lazuli squad. “I wouldn’t bet on it. Laz is stronger than each of us.” 

“I wouldn’t go _that_ far,” Jay said. 

“I would,” Amethyst said joining her kids. The gemlings looked up at their mamma. 

“Hey! This is a _jasper_ huddle!” Jewel said with a giggle. 

“I know, I know,” Amethyst laughed. “Just remember, don’t underestimate your opponents.” Amethyst smiled and turned to join Jasper in the sand. 

After a moment, the gemlings broke their huddle with Jay positioning herself in front of her siblings. “We accept. First to incapacitate the other team wins.” Sky cocked her hip as she glanced at her littermates. She certainly wasn’t intimidating, but her sisters knew when she meant business. Finally, her gaze landed on Cypress. The younger gemling gave Sky a nod who in turn gave a nod to Laz. 

“Alright then,” Laz replied before glancing at the gems watching them. “Like Mamma said, do it up.” 

The lazuli squad huddled quickly while Garnet and the jaspers were getting into place. “Alright, we’ve got this,” Laz said confidently. 

“Watch out for Jewel, her duplicate can sneak off without you knowing,” Sky said softly. 

“Cypress, go after Lake as best you can, okay? Take out her wings; freeze them, knot them, do whatever you’ve gotta do.” Cypress nodded at Laz slowly. 

“Let me take Jay. She can’t predict what she doesn’t know,” Sky said with a smile. 

“Come on lazuli squad, we’ve got this!” Laz said before lining up to face the jaspers. 

“Took you long enough,” Storm bantered side-eyeing Sky. 

“Don’t worry about how long it took us, or Sky. Worry about me.” Laz faced her sisters with a look of determination and certainty. The lazuli squad took a deep breath as Garnet started the match. 

Everything erupted into madness as the gemlings began their match. Storm charged at Laz while Lake faced off with Cypress. Jewel took up the back, immediately duplicating herself while Jay and Sky stared each other down. Lake extended her wings and immediately fell to the ground as they turned to ice. She looked up as Cypress giggled before running behind Laz. 

From their corner of the beach, you could hear the quartet cheering. “GO CYPRESS!! You can do it Lake! Come on Jay!” They cheered for all their sisters, deeply engrossed in the match. 

Sky was content with her face off against Jay. The striped jasper was sizing up her opponent which allowed Sky to split her focus between Jay and Jewel. She had noted Jewel’s duplicate rounding behind her. Sky and Jay called their weapons at the same time, but Jay charged first, wielding her staff with determination. Sky defended herself, still paying attention to Jewel and her double who were now circling her.

Suddenly, Storm whistled and Sky saw Jewel back off. Storm had charged full force at Laz only to meet a rather thick ice wall. After the initial blow wore off, Storm tried a spin dash. Laz was a step ahead of her sister, curving the ice wall into a ramp, sending Storm backward towards the jaspers. 

Cypress wasn’t nearly as big as the other gemlings, but she was keen. She kept her eye on Lake, encased in ice by her own wings. Cypress also watched the other jaspers, offering a well placed patch of ice or puff of fog to give the lazuli squad an edge. 

Sky moved towards Laz, luring Jay closer to Storm and Jewel who were teaming up against Laz. The jaspers weren’t aware of it, but they had fallen into a line directly in front of Laz. “Four against one?” Laz said jokingly as Sky fell behind her. 

“Cypress, we need water!” Sky yelled. As the jasper’s turned to look at Cypress, prepared for a water attack, Sky pushed her palm upward and created a sand storm. With the jaspers already too close to one another, they back themselves into a huddle. 

“Jay! What do we do?” Jewel called from within the blur of sand. 

“I don’t know! I can’t see anything.”

“What’s happening?” Storm called blindly trying to spindash through the sand. The high wind kept her moving circularly and she just added to the cyclone, crashing into her sisters. 

Laz had called a large body of water surrounding the sand storm Sky had created. “Are you ready Cypress?” Laz asked, smiling at her sister. Cypress smiled nodding her head and signing ‘ice’ discretely. 

“Two, three, GO!” Sky called as she abruptly stopped the sand. Laz lowered the water over the jaspers and Cypress promptly turned the blob to ice. Laz cooled the ice further, ensuring the jaspers couldn’t fight their way out. 

Sky knelt in the sand, catching her breath while Laz watched the encased jaspers carefully. When Garnet moved towards the middle of the makeshift arena and signaled end of match, the two older lazulis collapsed into the sand while Cypress allowed the ice to melt into a gush of seawater. The jaspers took a moment to take in their defeat, but after, Storm and Jewel rushed to their littermates. 

“You guys okay?” Jewel asked as she knelt by Laz while Storm helped Sky sit up. 

“Yeah,” Sky said softly. Laz rubbed her head and nodded. “You guys are just really strong. It takes a lot out of us to keep you down.” 

Storm sat next to Sky and wrapped her arm around her sister. “Good thing we’re on the same team.” 

Laz reached up offering a high five to Cypress. “Great job Cy, we couldn’t have done it without you on the team.” 

Jay smiled and nodded from a distance. “Yeah Cypress, that burst of fog was a great move.” 

Sky glanced over her shoulder. “Y’okay Lake?” That drew all the gemlings’ attention towards Lake. The gemling twisted her body a few times before leaping upward and calling her wings to help her land. 

“Yeah,” Lake said as she landed. “I’m good.” 

 

“That was incredibly unsafe,” Pearl said with a soft stamping of her foot. 

“How was that unsafe?” Jasper asked. “No one was hurt. No one was even in pain! Exhausted, yes, but being energetically draining doesn’t make something unsafe.” 

“Ugh. You just don’t understand. Cypress and Ivy are just gemlings! They are too young to know their own limits. And it’s not like the others understand that either. Cypress could have gotten hurt!” 

Amethyst immediately took her attention from the quartet, mock fighting each other in the sand, to Pearl and the other gems. Jasper looked down at her mate and could tell she was seething, but Amethyst behaved calmly. “I am really tired of you questioning the ability of our kids to understand the world around them. This is exactly how you always treated me, and it’s how you treated Steven. Cypress is most certainly old enough to spar, and Laz and Sky did a wonderful job allowing her to be part of the team while ensuring they protected her from any excessive danger.

“The jaspers never attacked Cypress. Jay, Jewel, and Storm all had the opportunity, but they didn’t. Cypress had some formidable distraction attacks and still, she was never touched. My kids understand she is young, they understand she needs practice, and they understand she doesn’t have their strength just yet. The only danger she was in was never realizing how strong and capable she really is because you continually hold her back.” With that, Amethyst walked onto the beach to congratulate the lazuli squad. 

 

Amethyst sat down on the beach with her oldest kids. They all looked tired, but happy. “You guys were amazing out there,” she said gently ruffling Sky’s hair. They all replied with a chorus of ‘thanks’ and ‘thank you’s. “I’m really proud of all of you, including you Cypress. You all did such a wonderful job.” 

“Your sand manipulation is awesome Sky,” Storm said, nudging her sister with her shoulder. 

“Thanks, I think I’m getting better at it,” Sky replied with a smile. 

“And your water powers are getting stronger Laz,” Jay whispered. “You really are stronger than any of us.” Laz blushed as she leaned against Jewel. 

“You guys were great too. I mean, you’re always really tough to take on,” Laz replied. 

“I’m really proud of all of you. You guys are all a really great team.” Amethyst smiled as she huddled the gemlings together and gave them a hug. “Now, what do you think of switching up lunch and 2-hour break? You can all take a nap and rest up, then you can eat.” 

“Sleeping sounds AMAZING,” Storm said causing the others to giggle. 

“Alright, I’m going to convince the quartz troupe it’s 2-hour break and not lunch time. You know how they love routine. Great job guys.” Amethyst watched the gemlings trekked inside before returning to the gems. “I switched lunch and 2-hour break. They’re all off to take a nap.” 

“That’s a great idea. I’m going to check on Cypress and Ivy,” Lapis said glancing at Jasper. 

“I’ll grab the quartz terrors,” Jasper said with a smile, walking away with Lapis. Garnet put her hand on Pearl’s shoulder gently before walking off in the direction of the temple as well. 

 

Amethyst felt bad, but she didn’t feel wrong. She didn’t want to take back what she said, but she didn’t like the awkwardness between her and Pearl. They stood in silence for a moment before Pearl cleared her throat. “Uhmm, Amethyst?” The purple gem looked up, brushing her hair from her face. “You may have been right. Your first litter has grown so much, they really are capable of more than I give them credit for.” Pearl brushed sand off her legs, trying to come up with her next statement. “I … I worry that I’m not doing a good enough job with Cypress and Ivy, that I’m not a very good … mother.” Pearl shook her head. “Anyway. I know it was unfair of me to imply Laz and Sky were immature.”

“They are incredibly smart Pearl,” Amethyst replied. “They all consider Ivy and Cypress their sisters and therefore, their responsibility to not only watch out for, but help grow into their place here on Earth. Don’t doubt them, they will always prove they understand more than you think.” Amethyst turned and headed towards the beach house. 

 

Back in the temple, the gemlings were dragging themselves to their rooms. “So … tired …” Jewel said as she collapsed onto her bed. 

“It takes a lot to duplicate yourself, huh?” Lake asked as she sat down on Jewel’s bed. 

Jewel nodded. “Are you gonna sleep here or in your bed?” Lake giggled as she curled up next to her sister. 

“Here duh!” 

 

Storm fell face first into Laz’s bed, her limbs spread from one edge to the other. “Move ya big lug!” Laz whined, too tired to push her sister aside. Storm mumbled something but the sound was muffled by the pillow. “Ugh. Whatever. Jay?” Laz called across the room as she headed over to Jay and Sky’s room. She found Sky and Jay sitting on their beds. Laz blushed as she stood in the doorway, worried she was interrupting. “Uhmm hey,” she whispered. 

“Hey Laz,” Jay said with a smile. 

“Aren’t you gonna take a nap with Storm?” Sky asked. She watched as her sister stumbled over her words. 

“I, uhm, wanted to talk with Jay for a bit. That is if she isn’t busy.” 

Sky smiled. “Well, that leaves Storm free to nap with me!” She said as she left the room, nudging Laz gently as she walked by. “Nice match.” 

 

“Move over you big ball of hair,” Sky said as she sat on the edge of Laz’s bed. “And why’d you take over Laz’s bed?” She pulled the pillow out from under Storm’s face so she could hear the reply. 

“Laz’s bed was closer.” 

Sky shook her head as she laughed. With a gentle pull, she wrapped Storm’s hair into a ponytail and curled up beside her sister. “I only saw some of your moves, but you were great today.” She pulled at Storm’s shoulder, moving closer to her sister and taking her favorite position of ‘big spoon’. 

Storm sighed contently. “Sky? Do you think … do you think the rubies will come back?” 

Sky gave Storm a reassuring squeeze. “Dunno. But they’re no match for us. We’ve got family on our side.” 

 

Laz sat on Sky’s bed fidgeting with the blanket. “What did you want to talk about?" Jay asked as she stretched. The striped jasper flopped backwards onto her bed waiting for a reply. 

“I, uhm, I didn’t want to talk,” Laz said quietly. Jay sat up and looked over at her sister curiously. “You know those bad dreams I was telling you about? I had another one last night.” Laz turned away from Jay. “I wanted to know if you’d mind if I slept here with you.” 

“Of course Laz,” Jay said with a smile. “You’re one of my top 11 sisters.” 

Laz shoved her sister as she giggled. “Ugh, you and your terrible jokes. But, it wouldn’t be as fun without you. Night Jay.” 

“Yep! Sleep well Laz.”


	7. Chapter 7

Amethyst held her whip over her head as she stretched. She didn’t bother to try to focus on fighting. She wasn’t in the mood for that and she knew Jasper wasn’t either. They had come to the sky arena to talk, (while making lazy attempts at pinning each other she supposed). As Jasper called her helmet, Amethyst cracked her whip towards Jasper’s arm. The orange gem was slow to move, catching the tip of Amethyst’s whip against her bicep. “Ow,” Jasper growled. “I thought we agreed no weapons,” she mumbled. 

“Alright, but that includes your helmet.” Amethyst tossed her whip into the air and watched it poof into faint purple smoke. 

“Fine. Better not crack my gem,” Jasper warned. 

“I like that you’re finally admitting I could,” Amethyst said before starting a spin dash towards her mate. Jasper dodged the purple gem, trying to avoid unconsciously calling her helmet. 

“Do you think,” Jasper said thoughtfully as she watched Amethyst circle her, “it’s the ruby ship thing?” Amethyst stopped, pondering Jasper’s question. Jasper took that moment for a spin dash attack of her own that Amethyst dodged less than gracefully. 

“I dunno. I guess it might be. Honestly, I think it’s great that the older litter is becoming so close. They have grown a lot. I’m proud of them. They’re not really kids anymore, but I still don’t like seeing them like this. They don’t need to carry the weight of the world.” Amethyst sat with a quiet thud, forgetting her match with Jasper. “It’s not healthy. It wasn’t for Steven and it isn’t for them.” 

Jasper gave up on their sparing as well, taking a seat next to her mate. “So, you agree there’s been a change?” Amethyst just nodded. 

Amethyst and Jasper hadn’t noticed much at first, it became apparent gradually. The gemlings were more introspective, quiet. Storm and Sky were more often seen having deep conversations, their facial expressions pensive. Jay began meditating more than she had in the past, Lake and Jewel often joining her. Laz, who had previously bound head first into any adventure, was weighing pros and cons and consulting her sisters more frequently. The overall energy had been muted and the gemlings seemed full of worry. 

“Whenever I’ve asked, they say nothing’s wrong,” Amethyst said softly. Jasper sprawled out on her back, deep in thought. “Have you tried to talk to them? I mean, could they just not want to talk to me about it?” 

“I doubt it,” Jasper replied softly. “They’ve never really shown that kind of preference when it comes to talking to us. I haven’t asked any of them specifically though.” Jasper closed her eyes as she thought about it. “We should talk to them about it directly. Maybe Garnet could watch the quartet?” Amethyst sighed before leaning back against Jasper. 

“Did you think this would be as hard as it is?” 

“Hum?” Jasper opened her eyes, looking towards her mate. 

“Raising gemlings, did you think it would be this hard?”

“I …” Jasper thought for a moment, her expression blank. “I don’t think I ever thought about it. I mean, the first litter wasn’t planned. And the second one, well, we were already raising the first one so …” Jasper’s voice trailed off. 

“I love them Jasp, and I worry I’m not doing such a great job with them.” Jasper wrapped her arm around Amethyst. 

“It’s hard to be a gem and be from Earth. We both know that. But our kids are doing just fine. They’ll get through this. It’s just … a short moment in their lives, one of many.”

“Do you ever miss how it was when they were little?” Amethyst asked while absentmindedly running her fingers over one of Jasper’s stripes. 

“Sometimes. It was always nice to be able to hold them when they were scared or watch them giggle when we would play silly games. Storm would always be so eager to show us the latest thing she could do. Laz too, they were both always so happy to know we were proud of them.” 

“Do you remember Sunrae learning to walk? Her litter mates had all started walking but the stubborn little ball of love refused.” 

“Yes,” Jasper laughed. “But once she decided she was going to walk, she did it by marching up to me and demanding I pick her up. ‘Look momma! Up now!’” 

“She wanted attention. She felt Flame was getting it all,” Amethyst replied before sighing. “It’s such a hard balance to strike with the quartet. They are all so independent, yet they need attention. And with such strong personalities …” 

“You mean they’re stubborn,” Jasper said. 

“Yeah, just like their momma.” 

“And their sire,” Jasper said with smile. 

“Fine, _and_ their sire. I just don’t want them to ever feel like they aren’t loved the same way their sisters are.” 

“I don’t think they feel that way. The quartet are so different from their sisters. I mean, they’re Earth quartz gems. Maybe not from a kindergarten, but both their parents were.” Suddenly Jasper realized something. “I know you wouldn’t really know much about this, but they act very much like the Beta gems did when we first emerged. They are closely bonded, adventurous, independent, and sometimes a little mischievous. I think it’s just engraved in their gemstones.” 

“Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like to emerge with the Prime gems.”

“They would have loved their runt sister,” Jasper said, pulling Amethyst close. “From the little I remember, you’re a lot like them, goofy, energetic, fun. I’m … I’m sorry you didn’t get to meet them.” 

“Maybe someday,” Amethyst sighed. Jasper wished her mate had had a chance to know the other Prime gems. They certainly would have loved her and accepted her. Quartz gems surely had pack loyalty. 

“Hey,” She said softly to Amethyst. “Why don’t we take the kids to see our kindergartens. The older ones have heard the stories, they know what to expect. We could talk with them about what it’s like to be an Earth gem.” 

“That’s an awesome idea. You know, you’re smarter than you look,” Amethyst said playfully. Jasper pushed Amethyst off her as she laughed. 

 

Amethyst, Jasper, and six gemlings stood in the sandstone staring up at the striped walls, gem exit holes carved out haphazardly throughout the surfaces. Amethyst looked over at Jasper, watching her mate take it all in. She hadn’t been back to her kindergarten in ages, not counting her appearance as part of Malachite during their most recent battle. 

“It’s so big,” Jay said softly. The others stood gazing upward towards the seemingly never-ending walls. 

“This is the Beta kindergarten,” Amethyst said quietly. “This is where Momma’s from.” 

“Is that why Momma has stripes?” Jewel asked.

“They match the sandstone!” Laz said running her fingers over the surface. Sky moved towards Jasper and wrapped her arms around her mother’s waist.

“The sandstone is really pretty, just like you Momma,” Sky whispered. Jasper wrapped her arm around Sky’s shoulder gently. 

“Thanks baby.”

After the gemlings had had enough exploring the kindergarten, Amethyst and Jasper sat them down. They told them more about the gem war and the need to produce soldiers. They gently explained the expectations of homeworld and the ideals on both sides. 

“You were … on opposites sides of this war?” Storm asked, looking between Jasper and Amethyst. 

“Well, not exactly,” Amethyst answered. “We were certainly on opposites sides, but not exactly during the war. Come on, let’s take a trip to another kindergarten.” 

As they arrived on the warp pad at the Prime kindergarten, Amethyst sighed. She visited her kindergarten fairly often, so the state of disarray wasn’t surprising to her, but she always felt a tinge of overwhelming anxiety when she first arrived. 

“This is Prime,” Amethyst said quietly. She let the gemlings look around, but she stayed a distance behind. 

“The holes are so …” Storm tilted her head sideways as she looked up and down the rock, “ordered.” 

Jasper put her hand on Storm’s shoulder as she spoke, “Beta didn’t have as much planning as Prime did. They didn’t organize the injections well and the equipment and materials weren’t as good.” 

“The holes are almost all the same size,” Lake said as she walked down a row of exit holes. 

“Gems of similar types are usually uniform in size,” Jasper answered. 

“Mamma?” Jay whispered to Amethyst. “Is that one yours?” Jay pointed to a hole a short distance away, low to the ground and rather small. 

“Yes.” Amethyst walked with Jay towards the spot she had referenced while the other gems followed. “That’s the spot I emerged from, 500 years too late.” Jasper looked over at Amethyst with concern, but Jewel spoke before she could.

“What do you mean ‘too late’?” Jasper could feel the uneasiness growing within her mate. She looked over at Amethyst and then back at Jewel. 

“Prime … and Beta … were designed to produce soldiers for homeworld during the war,” Jasper started. “Most gems injected at similar times, emerge at similar times, then they were given their orders and everything moved forward.” She looked over at her mate and saw Amethyst staring at her hole. “When Amethyst emerged, Prime had been empty for many years.” The gemlings were quiet. 

“Homeworld considers me defective,” Amethyst said, avoiding eye contact with the gemlings. “I should be Jasper’s size, but something went wrong. And I missed the other Prime gems by 500 years.” Amethyst sat down, running her fingers through the gravel and dirt. Jasper and the gemlings sat with her. “We wanted to bring you out here … to show you our kindergartens … because,” Amethyst paused glancing over at Jasper. “Being a gem from Earth is complicated. It was complicated for Jasper during the war. It was complicated for me, after the war. Even now, I’m sure it’s complicated for you and it will be complicated for your sisters. You hear all the stories of what homeworld wanted to do to Earth and,” Amethyst cut her thought short, unsure what point she was trying to make. “You each have a special place here. You are gems. We come from homeworld, but this, Earth, is our home.” 

“Momma?” Laz said quietly. “What do lazulis do?” Jasper tilted her head, unsure what Laz was trying to ask. “You said that gems have a purpose. Quartz gems are soldiers, so, what do lapis lazulis do?” 

“Well,” Jasper smiled. “Quartz gems are born to fight, they can feel it. What do you two feel like you were born to do? What makes you feel strong and fulfilled?” Sky and Laz looked at each other. 

“Controlling water, I suppose,” Laz said. 

Sky nodded, “Controlling electricity.” 

Amethyst grinned, happy to hear her daughters did indeed feel fulfilled. “Lapis lazulis are terraformers. They reorganized and sculpted planets to better serve the needs of homeworld.”

“Being able to control such basic forms of nature, like water or wind or electricity makes lazulis very strong gems. They can literally move and shape mountains. They could sculpt a planet into anything they want with the proper training.” The gemlings stared at Jasper while she spoke. “Their abilities, your abilities are incredible. All of you, my gemlings, are powerful.” 

“That’s why we’ve gotta protect Earth,” Jewel said quietly. “We are powerful and this is our home.” Her sisters nodded to each other. 

“So,” Jay said thoughtfully, looking to Amethyst. “All the training we’ve done while we were growing up. You weren’t training us to fight homeworld. You were training us to help us find who we are.” 

Amethyst smiled back at Jay, “We never wanted you to have to fight homeworld, but we’ve always wanted you to find who you really were. Do you think it helped?” Amethyst watched as Jay’s eyes widened. It was clear something had sparked in the gemling’s mind. For a second, Amethyst could see the pieces move together in Jay’s mind before she threw herself into Amethyst’s arms, knocking the gem over. Amethyst laughed, hugging her daughter. 

“I’m an Earth jasper, strong, smart, and brave. This is my home, and this is my wonderful family,” Jay said, her face buried in Amethyst’s shoulder. “I love you Mamma.” 

 

When the gems returned home, they were greeted by the quartet. “They’re home!” Starla called happily as she and her sisters ran to their family. 

“We missed you,” Amee said as she smiled up at Jasper. 

“Did you enjoy spending time with Garnet?” Amethyst asked, laughing gently at her daughters’ everlasting excitement. 

“We didn’t spend time with Garnet,” Sunrae replied. “We got to hang out with Ruby and Sapphire!” The quartet grinned. There was a chorus of awe from the older litter before Storm spoke up. 

“That’s so cool. How about we go to our room and you guys can tell us all about it!” 

“Then we can tell you about our day too,” Lake chimed in. The gemlings headed off to their room looking very excited, but Laz hung back. As her sisters disappeared into the temple Laz looked up at her parents. 

“Thank you … for taking us to see your kindergartens today.” Laz shifted her gaze from Jasper to Amethyst before focusing on the floor. “When I was young, training was frustrating. Storm is so strong and … and Jay is so fast. I felt like training was for quartz gems. It was pointless for me to practice every week when I would never have the kind of skills my sisters had.” Amethyst rested her hand on Laz’s shoulder and the gemling looked up with a smile. “But I got older, and I got stronger. I remember sitting on the beach with Amethyst, turning water into ice. I was so proud of what I had learned, I still am proud of what I’ve learned. Eventually, I learned what it meant to be a lazuli, and what it meant to be me, to be Laz. I realize now that it started off by learning what it meant to be a gem.” 

Jasper picked up the water gem and hugged her. “We’re proud of you Laz. You’ve grown to be an incredible gem.”


	8. Chapter 8

“Ha! Tag, you’re it!” Sunrae yelled at Amee after slapping her sister’s arm. Amee immediately changed directions and took off in a spindash down the beach, tackling Starla. 

“It!” Amee yelled before darting away from Starla. Starla looked around for a moment before running full speed at Flame. 

“Flame’s it!” Starla yelled after two-hand tagging her sister with a shove. Starla, Amee, and Sunrae took off in different directions while Flame stood on the beach deciding which of her sisters to go after. 

“You can’t catch me!” Amee teased her sister as she ran down the beach. 

“Yes, I can!” Flame called loudly in pursuit. 

“Nope!” Amee called after a casual look over her shoulder. 

“Yes. I can!” Flame yelled. She ground her teeth and took off faster after Amee, a booming shockwave following her. Sunrae and Starla stopped when they heard the sound. Both gemlings turned to see Flame tackle their sister before both hit the ground hard. 

Sunrae stared in shock as the dust cloud began to dissipate. Starla circled them, trying to figure out exactly what had happened and if her sisters were okay. When the sand had finally settled, Flame and Amee were lying at the bottom of a crater. 

“FLAME! AMEE!” Sunrae yelled as she slid down the steep entrance to the hole. Flame began to stand up, pulling herself off her sister and shaking the sand off herself. “Amee?” Sunrae whispered.

The gemlings held their breath, waiting to see if Amee was alright. They hoped their sister would jump up, brushing the sand off her legs and scolding Flame for being so rough. But, she didn’t move. “Amee?” Sunrae said again, this time kneeling next to her sister. Slowly, Amee began to stir, her eyes cast downward as she stood. “Are you alright?” Sunrae asked softly. 

Eventually, Amee looked up, scanning her surroundings until she fixed her sight on Flame. “What was THAT for?” Amee’s face was flushed as she tried to hold back a growl. 

“What? It wasn’t so bad,” Flame said with an embarrassed shrug. “We were just playing, and you’re fine. You were the one saying I couldn’t catch you. Stop … being sensitive.” 

“Sensitive?” Amee shouted. “You drilled me into the ground face first with a sonic charge! You jerk, that’s where my gem is!” Sunrae rested her hand on Amee’s shoulder, trying to get her to calm down. 

“Your gem’s fine. Why are you making such a big deal about it? Are you mad because you’re it?” Flame goaded. 

“Flame, you were kinda rough,” Starla commented. 

“What, now you’re crying?” Flame said as she saw the tears in Amee’s eyes. 

“No,” Amee said quietly.

“You are! You’re crying,” Flame replied, looking confused. 

“I AM NOT!” Amee screamed, accidently sending out a sonic wave that threw Flame into the side of the crater. As Flame shook off Amee’s accidental attack, Starla and Sunrae looked towards each other, trying to decide the best way to break this up. Before they could intervein, Jasper and Amethyst appeared standing at the top of the crater. 

“Cool down. NOW,” Amethyst said to all four gemlings. Sunrae and Starla quickly hopped out of the pit and each found a section of the beach to sit quietly. Flame and Amee continued to stare each other down. 

“Amee and Flame,” Jasper called sternly. “Amethyst said now.” Amee and Flame glared at each other for another few seconds longer before each jumping back onto the beach and sitting where they landed. 

Jasper rolled her eyes at her mate before addressing the quartet. “Three minutes. We will tell you when you can go back to playing.” 

It wasn’t very surprising that the quartet had quick tempers. But, as young gems, they weren’t always able to control their anger, even when it was directed at others they loved. As they got older, losing their temper often went hand in hand with accidental activation of their powers. Giving the quartet a time out where they had a chance to cool down seemed to work well. Jasper and Amethyst were strict about “cool down”, but once things had settled, they always gave each of the gemlings a chance to have their voice heard. 

After two minutes had passed, Jasper sat beside Amee. She wiped a stray tear from her daughter’s face before nodding slowly. “The sonic attack was an accident,” Amee said softly. “I was frustrated and Flame was teasing me for crying, so I yelled. I hope she’s okay.” 

Amethyst reached her arm around Flame’s shoulder and softly ran her fingertips over Flame’s gem. Flame sighed before resting her head against Amethyst, briefly touching her sire’s gem. It was a wordless reminder to the gemling that they were connected, that they were the same. When Flame was young, the tiny gemling was comforted when Amethyst would touch her gem. As she got older, she would run her fingers over Amethyst’s gem when she was being held. Holding her hand against her own gem soon became one of the gemling’s methods of self-soothing. It was suspected that it had something to do with its placement in the middle of her chest. 

“She kept telling me I couldn’t catch her. I didn’t mean to sonic charge, but when we got up she was okay. I was scared she wouldn’t be. I don’t get why she started crying.”

“Did you ask her?” Amethyst said gently. 

“Yeah! But she kept saying she wasn’t crying. Then I got a sonic attack.” Flame looked down at her hands. “I just want her to be okay.” 

They could hear Jasper and Amee as they approached. Flame looked away as Amee sat down near her. Jasper and Amethyst left to go talk with Starla and Sunrae, leaving the gemlings to sort out their problems.

“Flame,” Amee said after a moment. “I didn’t mean to push you into the wall of the crater. It was an accident. I was just frustrated. Are you okay? Did I hurt you?” 

“No, I’m okay,” Flame mumbled. “Are you?” She asked with more concern, turning to look at her sister. Amee just nodded. “Why … why were you crying?” Flame asked.

“You pinned me with a sonic charge, Flame. And you didn’t even care that you could have hurt my gem! I was frustrated.” Amee sighed. “I was crying because I was frustrated.” 

“I got carried away, I didn’t mean to sonic charge. It was irresponsible. But I did care, I was worried. I just didn’t understand why you were crying.” Flame slid over towards Amee. “I’m sorry.” The gemlings sat in silence for a while until Amee put her arm around Flame. 

“I’m glad you’re okay,” Amee said softly. 

“I’m glad you’re okay too,” Flame replied. 

“Mamma said we could go back to playing,” Sunrae said as she approached her sisters. “That is, if everything’s okay now.” 

“Is everything okay?” Starla asked. Flame and Amee nodded. 

“But, I don’t wanna play tag anymore,” Flame said softly. 

“That’s okay. What do you want to do?” Sunrae asked. 

“Wanna form Moonfire?” Amee asked timidly. “I bet she’d enjoy hanging out for a while.”

“Would it make you feel better?” Starla asked. Amee nodded in reply. “Okay then, I’m in.” 

“Me too,” Sunrae said with a smile as she reached out and wrapped her sisters in a hug. As the gemlings began to giggle, they were surrounded by a purple light followed by a flash of orange. 

 

“I want to go swimming!” Moonfire giggled as she ran towards the water, but stopped short. “Oh! I should ask Jasper if I can.” She paused for a moment, thinking about what she should do. “I think … she went back towards the temple with Amethyst.” Moonfire turned and dashed towards the temple. 

When she reached the temple, Jasper and Amethyst weren’t outside, so she climbed the stairs to the beach house. “Jasper?” She called as she entered the house, but Moonfire looked around and found the beach house empty. _Where’d everyone go?_ She looked at the temple door anxiously. _I’ve never tried to get into the temple._ As Moonfire slowly reached for the door, it slid open, Lapis standing at its entrance. 

“Ah, Moonfire, right?” Lapis said, her facial expression blank. 

“Ye…yes?” 

“Are you looking for … your … parents?” Lapis asked with a rather strange look on her face. 

“Yes! … Well,” Moonfire stopped to think about the question. “Uhmm, Amethyst and Jasper. I’m not sure they are my parents?” 

“Right.” Lapis paused to consider this. “Well, they’ll be right back. They were just behind me.” 

“Uhmm, thank you. I’ll wait outside.” With that, Moonfire quickly exited the beach house. She found a spot near the water and sat quietly before beginning a conversation with herself. _Well, I guess not, you know, technically. But I’ve called Jasper “Momma”, haven’t I? And the reason I even went to the temple was to ask if it was okay to go swimming. Why would I do that if they aren’t my parents? How have I never thought about this before?_

Moonfire’s inner monologue was interrupted by Jasper voice. “Moonfire. I wasn’t expecting to see you.” 

“Hi Jasper,” the fusion whispered without looking up. 

“Uh, is something wrong?” Jasper hesitated, but eventually sat down next to Moonfire. The fusion stared at her lap, wringing one set of hands while the other set dug into the sand. Jasper gently rested her hand on Moonfire’s back. “Do you want to talk?” 

“Are … are you and Amethyst …” Moonfire stopped, reconsidering if she even wanted to ask. She looked up at Jasper and saw a kind expression. “Are you and Amethyst my parents?” Moonfire finally spit out. She clenched her jaw to keep the tears in her eyes from spilling. 

“Well,” Jasper stopped when she saw the tears in Moonfire’s eyes. “Moonfire! It’s okay.” Jasper pulled the fusion into her arms gently. “As a fusion, you aren’t Sunrae, Flame, Starla, or Amee, you’re someone different.” Jasper looked over into Moonfire’s eyes. “But they’re part of you! And Amethyst and I love you just like we love them. I suppose, you don’t need parents in the same way they do, but we’re still here for you.” Moonfire wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled at Jasper. “Amethyst and I don’t have parents either, but you can find others to look up to. Okay?” 

“Okay!” She giggled as Jasper hugged her. 

“I suppose the quartet made up, since I get to see you around. So, everything’s good?” 

“Yup! But, I wanted to know if it was okay for me to go swimming.” 

“Sure, just be safe okay? And the quartet should be back to have dinner with their sisters.”


End file.
